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Mainstream media, at least in tech, have betted that digital payments will be disruptive because of the pandemic given how unsanitary cash payments are. I mean,

Mainstream media, at least in tech, have betted that digital payments will be disruptive because of the pandemic given how unsanitary cash payments are. I mean, it makes sense for people to use digital wallets instead of cash but as restrictions are now easing, we see that cash is still king in physical transactions (at least in regions where credit card usage is not common).

detaro 5y ago
I am in a generally cash-heavy location (Germany), but contactless cards (the usual German debit card also supports contactless by now) pretty much have covered the pandemic. The usual holdouts are small food places, but I've used those a lot less. And I guess during the pandemic people used delivery or pick-up-scheduling apps a lot for those, with payments online.
- toomuchtodo 5y ago
  Is it difficult or expensive in Germany as a merchant to obtain a contactless card reader for accepting payments?
  - detaro 5y ago
    Supermarkets and other larger stores by now have them pretty universally, as do fast-food chains etc. (which is why I haven't really needed cash anytime recently). I'm honestly not sure what the causes for the rest are, it could be that the debit card terminals are harder/more expensive to get for a small restaurant/bar and credit cards alone just isn't worth it? There is not yet an underlying cultural assumption that you'll accept cards as such a place, it mostly just catches tourists off guard, so they don't loose that much by not having it. What I can't remember ever seeing here are these readers that attach to phones, but I don't know how common those are elsewhere in small shops.
raxxorrax 5y ago
Cash wasn't really a factor for transmission for Covid, so people are already back to paying with cash in my country (pretty popular here). I prefer cash to most digital transactions outside that from my own bank because there is often some form of undesirable middle-man. I don't like apple, google or facebook be involved here in any way.

detaro 5y ago

I am in a generally cash-heavy location (Germany), but contactless cards (the usual German debit card also supports contactless by now) pretty much have covered the pandemic. The usual holdouts are small food places, but I've used those a lot less. And I guess during the pandemic people used delivery or pick-up-scheduling apps a lot for those, with payments online.

toomuchtodo 5y ago
Is it difficult or expensive in Germany as a merchant to obtain a contactless card reader for accepting payments?
- detaro 5y ago
  Supermarkets and other larger stores by now have them pretty universally, as do fast-food chains etc. (which is why I haven't really needed cash anytime recently). I'm honestly not sure what the causes for the rest are, it could be that the debit card terminals are harder/more expensive to get for a small restaurant/bar and credit cards alone just isn't worth it? There is not yet an underlying cultural assumption that you'll accept cards as such a place, it mostly just catches tourists off guard, so they don't loose that much by not having it. What I can't remember ever seeing here are these readers that attach to phones, but I don't know how common those are elsewhere in small shops.

raxxorrax 5y ago

Cash wasn't really a factor for transmission for Covid, so people are already back to paying with cash in my country (pretty popular here). I prefer cash to most digital transactions outside that from my own bank because there is often some form of undesirable middle-man. I don't like apple, google or facebook be involved here in any way.